Camp Highlights

Ravens

August 23, 2009|By Edward Lee

BAG OF TRICKS: : The team unveiled a couple of different looks Saturday. Special teams ran 13 fake field-goal plays, and the scout team went to a Wildcat formation with rookie running back Cedric Peerman taking direct shotgun snaps.

YELLOW FLAG WATCH: : The team was flagged just three times Saturday. The offense was cited for a false start and illegal motion, while the defense jumped offside once.

AGE IS JUST A NUMBER : Ray Lewis might be 34, but the linebacker loses a few years when he gets on the field. During one play, when Matt Lawrence motioned out of the backfield and lined up as a wide receiver on the outside, it was Lewis who covered the running back.

CATCH OF THE DAY, PART ONE: : Quarterback Troy Smith threw a slant pass that was slightly behind Jason Cook, but the rookie fullback juggled the football and eventually hung onto it as he slid to the turf.

CATCH OF THE DAY, PART TWO: : Eron Riley has had a quiet camp, but the rookie wide receiver caught a high pass from quarterback John Beck despite being sandwiched by cornerback Domonique Foxworth and safety Haruki Nakamura.

GETTING A LEG UP: : For the first time this camp, neither Steve Hauschka nor rookie Graham Gano kicked field goals in the full-team practice.

OVERHEARD: : "Do it again! Pay attention to detail!" - Jerry Rosburg, assistant head coach and special teams coordinator, chastising the special teams unit when a fake field-goal attempt did not develop as planned.

Q&A: Linebacker William VanDeSteeg

An undrafted rookie out of Minnesota, VanDeSteeg has been rotating with second-round pick Paul Kruger as Suggs recovers from a strained left heel. VanDeSteeg and Kruger have been getting one-on-one tutoring from defensive coordinator Greg Mattison.

Question:: What's it like to work with Greg Mattison?

Answer:: It's phenomenal. The guy has coached for, what, 40 years? He's coached longer than most people have lived. It's just crazy because he knows the game so well. He pushes us to be so good, and he knows how good we can be. ... He just wants us to keep pushing and work hard.

Q: : What's the one food you won't eat?

A: : My sister and I, my grandpa made us eat eggs, and we puked in the back of his car, and that was the last time he made us eat eggs. Any kind of egg - scrambled, egg whites - I can't eat it. When my mom makes potato salad with egg in it, I can't eat it. It's disgusting.